Walled Feelings
by TeamChaosPrez
Summary: After a failed relationship with Sara, Wirt returns to the Unknown to find Beatrice. [[Five years later. Oneshot.]]


Walled Feelings

An Over the Garden Wall One-shot

_A/N: This is the start of a writing bootcamp I designed for myself, so expect to see a lot of me between today and June 21st. There will also be a multi-chapter sequel to this oneshot starting in late May, so look out for that. Anyway, hope you stick around through the entire thing, because I'm going to need all the support I can get._

When Wirt really looked back at the last four years, he truly had to admit to himself that Sara just hadn't been the right match for him. They had cared for one another greatly, of course, but when all was said and done the relationship wasn't one that was set to be a long-term one. In face, Sara's affair with Jason Funderburker had almost been a relief, a reason to cut it off.

This didn't mean that the young English major was happy with the outcome, of course. In fact, he had begun to sink into a depression, one that not even Greg could pull him out of. No matter how many walks his younger half-brother yanked him out on or how many nice desserts his mother supplied for him, Wirt seemed to be trapped in an eternal cycle of tiredness and sad poetry.

As time passed, he started finding it difficult to get out of bed and do anything. One morning in early November, however, he realized how ridiculous he was being. Hadn't he been wanting the relationship to end for weeks beforehand? Why was this affecting him so badly?

He sighed heavily and pulled himself out of the safe haven that was his bed, sitting and facing the window. One of his pale hands reached out to gently touch the cold glass as he looked out at the window. From the room he shared with Greg, he could almost see the cemetery.

He still remembered what had happened that Halloween, the crazy adventures, the bluebird, the frog, the woodsman... and of course, the Beast. His brows furrowed in thought as he looked towards the graveyard, remembering how many times Beatrice had pulled him out of bad states and back on track to getting home.

Why wouldn't she be able to do the same for him now?

Now, reasonably, he should not have put on his old costume and left the house, but Wirt had left behind reason during his first trip to the Unknown. He also should not have climbed up a tree and to the top of the wall, or sat on the edge and stared into the woods. And by all means, he definitely should not have jumped over and into a pile of leaves that cushioned the fall like a pillow.

The young man stood and brushed himself off, straightening the pointy hat that had been sent slightly off-kilter. He looked down the hill, trying to remember how he had gotten into the Unknown in the first place.

He took a deep breath and squeezed his eyes shut, rolling down the hill and into the small river. Cold water pierced through his clothes and soaked him to the bone like a million tiny daggers, overcoming him within moments. Darkness consumed his limited vision as he lost consciousness, hoping to everything that this would work and he would not be killed.

Sure enough, within a few minutes he could feel a light breeze across him and the leaves rustling above him. Wirt sat up and rubbed his neck, looking around the woods. Yes, this was definitely where he had gone once before... the smells and the air were the same, and he could almost recognize his surroundings as though they were something from a dream.

He didn't take very long in his trip down memory lane before starting to walk, rubbing his arms slightly to get rid of the last lingering bits of cold. It wasn't until the sun started getting low in the sky that he realized that he had not thought this through very well at all.

Wirt did not know the Unknown very well. He didn't know how to find Beatrice, or even where the old Woodsman's house was. He bit his lip and kept on, wondering where he could stay the night without risking bodily harm.

"Genius. Absolutely genius." He grumbled to himself. His voice hadn't changed much from how it had been when he was a teenager. It had gotten lower, as boys' often do, and had a more superior tone to it that came with his education. "God, I'm so stupid."

He grit his teeth and continued walking. There wasn't any going back now; he couldn't even remember how to get back. It looked like he was stuck exploring the Unknown for now, hoping to find Beatrice by some stupid luck.

Hours upon hours passed. The sun set until it was completely dark in the forest and Wirt could barely see where he was going. A heavy sigh left him as he continued to walk through the night, eventually finding a tree that seemed a little bit more comfortable and safe than the others.

He curled up underneath, closing his eyes and trying to make his last thoughts before falling asleep positive ones for fear of the Beast.

He wasn't sure entirely how long he had been asleep. All he knew was that he woke up to gentle hands shaking him and a distantly familiar voice calling his name.

"Wirt... Wirt... Wirt!"

He groaned and slowly opened his eyes to find a girl around his age with red hair pulled into a bun looking at him. He blinked, not really recognizing her at first until he looked into her eyes.

"Beatrice...?"

The girl smacked him in the arm, affirming his assumption. "You idiot! What are you doing back here? I thought you went home!"

"I did." He answered, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "I came back looking for you."

The look on Beatrice's face softened a moment before she frowned and crossed her arms again. "I hope you're not looking for anything important out of me." She replied, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. "I haven't had much since Mom and Dad kicked me out."

"Your parents kicked you out...?" Wirt started, but quickly shook his head again. "It doesn't matter. I was looking for you because I've missed you, that's all."

"Missed me...?" She seemed almost confused by this claim, but just shook her head and offered a hand to help him up, which he gladly took and got to his feet with her help.

"Yeah. Missed you. You're my friend, aren't you?"

A tiny blush seemed to appear on her face, and to his own mortification his mimicked hers. She seemed to be making him feel a way that had almost become alien to him, a feeling that had been left behind a few years ago when things between himself and Sara had really gone down the drain.

"I guess I am." She answered simply.

"And I think I might stay this time. If that's alright with you."

Beatrice gave him a shocked look but nodded a little. "But what about Greg...?"

"He'll be fine. He's a happy kid, and no time passed last time I visited."

She hesitated a moment, but nodded and took his hand, starting to lead him through the trees. "Come on, I'll take you to where I've been staying. It's a better option than sleeping under a tree."

"Sounds good to me."


End file.
